A Brief History of Riker’s Automotive & Tire
1909-1983
Since the creation of the automobile, the Riker family has been repairing vehicles in central Florida. Before that, David O. Riker built and repaired wagon wheels locally.
In 1939, Orval A. Riker purchased commercial land and constructed a large repair facility with a gasoline
A Brief History of Riker’s Automotive & Tire
1909-1983
Since the creation of the automobile, the Riker family has been repairing vehicles in central Florida. Before that, David O. Riker built and repaired wagon wheels locally.
In 1939, Orval A. Riker purchased commercial land and constructed a large repair facility with a gasoline pump out front. He named the shop O.A.Riker and Son Garage. Although this shop was sold in the 1970s, it is still being used for auto repair today.
In 1973, O. Vernon Riker opened his first Chevron service station, located at 6908 Sandlake Rd. near I-4. He soon had two additional stations, one in the town of Windermere and another at Sandlake near the airport. These stations all had service bays and did complete automotive repairs.
1983-Present
In 1984, V. Brent Riker opened a Mobil station on International Dr. near the Civic Center. This station had three service bays, did complete automotive repairs, and was one of the first Mobil Lube Express stations in Florida. Riker’s also operated tow trucks from the station. It was not long before these three bays had more repair work than could be done. Land was purchased and the present day ten-bay facility was constructed at 5700 Central Florida Parkway. To date, this shop is the only Bridgestone/Firestone affiliated dealer with an Orlando address.
In 1997, the Mobil station was rebuilt without service bays and the towing business was moved to 1930 Central Florida Parkway.
In 2000, the business was again expanded to a three bay Pennzoil Express Lube with a full service carwash at 5694 Central Florida Parkway.
In 2007, the Riker legacy continued to grow when the newest location opened at 7375 South Orange Avenue.
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Verified Customer
Your son came in complaining about the front end vibrating. In order to determine the cause of the vibration, we had to have it put on a lift. It could have been multiple items that caused it to vibrate.
Once it was determined by our technician that it had at least 2 separated tires and steel showing out of at least one of them, we told your son what we have found. It was determined that you wanted to put Goodyear tires on the car and you agreed to the price that was quoted. As explained, we did not have them in stock, but they were at our warehouse.
While balancing the tires, we noticed that one of the front wheels was "out of round". This would be another reason for vibration. We found a used wheel, and this price was also agreed to.
I fail to see how we took advantage of the situatiion as you state, since you as the parent, were making all of the decisions, not your son.
We did not have any "extra" charges on the ticket for us using our own tools or shop charges.
Everything was above board, with you giving the green light on all of the charges.
We work with MANY of the students in this area, espescially the Disney Intern and Sea World students, to make sure that their car is in working order. We know that some of them are far from home and the parents are not here to help them make decisions.
We are AAA approved and have been for over 20 years. It is not a certification that is easy to get and maintained.
Please have your son, stop back in when he needs his oil changed and I will make sure that he gets it free of charge.
Thank you,
Ron Goins
General Manager
